About us

Specificities of the edition

The Caucasian Knot, an online media outlet was founded by the International Society "Memorial" in 2001. Since 2008, the founder of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" is the Limited Liability Company (LLC) "MEMO"; the Registration Certificate of the mass medium El No. FS 77-31048 was issued on January 25, 2008, by the Federal Service for Supervision in the Sphere of Mass Communications, Telecom and Protection of Cultural Heritage.

Making the general idea about the editorial policy of the "Caucasian Knot" (CK) can be will the help of the CK's Code of Ethics.

The main goals set by the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" are: ensuring freedom of access to the truthful and unbiased information about the events in the Caucasus; informing the Russian and world public about the cases of human rights violations and the situation in the area of armed conflicts, nationality-based or political discrimination, and refugees' problems; and rendering informational support to the development of civil initiatives and independent mass media.

Readers of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" can get acquainted with the news and reference materials prepared by the CK's own correspondents working in 20 regions of the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD), the Southern Federal District (SFD) and the Southern Caucasus. The regional focus of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" allows covering the events and processes in Russia, Europe and the Middle East, when the heroes of our news agenda are natives from the regions, which make the focus of our attention – Abkhazia, Adjara, Adygea, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Astrakhan and Volgograd Regions, Georgia, Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Kalmykia, Karachay-Cherkessia, Krasnodar Territory, Nagorno-Karabakh, Rostov Region, North Ossetia-Alania, Stavropol Territory, Chechnya and South Ossetia.

How everything works

The materials of the CK are structured into 7 main sections and 20 subsections, the most dynamic of which is the "News" section. Daily, the pages of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" publish from 70 to 100 materials and messages. All the sections are equipped with a search system for major topics and trends of 20 regions of Northern and Southern Caucasus. Since August 2003, the CK operates its English-language version. Since January 2009, the medium operates its new interactive services: the forum, author's blogs and video of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT". We regularly update our photo album, where photos made by our authors from the regions of the Caucasus are posted.

Since March 2012, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" is running the rating of registered readers, who are actively commenting on the materials. As of September 2016, the rating covered more than 37,000 commentators.

Since 2013, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" is holding its contest "Hero of the Caucasus", within which readers vote for those regional figures, who have achieved concrete and tangible results by helping people. "Heroes of the Caucasus" are those who managed to defend someone's rights, or, at the risk of their well-being, disclosed the hushed-up information, performed his/her professional duties with a threat to life and health, or stood for one's position in public interest.

Cooperation

Since 2014, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" is holding, on the annual basis, jointly with the Russian Union of Journalists, a contest of works by journalists writing about the Caucasus, within the framework of the award named after Akhmednabi Akhmadnabiyev – a "CAUCASIAN KNOT" correspondent, who was killed in Dagestan on July 9, 2013.

In different years, the partners of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" were: the Human Rights Institute, the "Panorama" Information and Research Centre, the Russian Service of the BBC http://www.bbc.com/russian, and online medium "Gazeta.ru". The CK is financed by various charitable foundations. The CK's Registration Certificate of a mass medium El No. FS 77-31048, dated January 25, 2008, was issued by the Federal Service for Supervision in the Sphere of Telecom, Information Technologies and Mass Communications (Roskomnadzor).

Recognition

In June 2007, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" was awarded the "The Free Press of Eastern Europe" named after Gerd Bucerius, established by the German weekly Zeit and the Norwegian Fritt Ord (Free Word) Foundation, for the support of the freedom of speech and the civil society.In 2009, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" was awarded the prize of the Russian Union of Journalists "For the Defence of Interests of the Professional Community" for a series of materials in defence of journalists' rights.On March 13, 2012, in Vlaardingen (the Netherlands) the editor-in-chief of the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" was awarded the 2011 Geuzenpenning medal for the activities of overcoming informational barriers and for the dissemination of information on the situation with human rights.In 2013, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" became Laureate of the "SMIrotvorets" (Medium-Peacemaker) Award.In 2014, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" received a Laureate Diploma of the contest "For Courage and Objectivity in Journalism.In 2015, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" was awarded the Peace Prize (by the NGO "Democracy Today").In 2016, the "CAUCASIAN KNOT" was awarded the prize "For Journalistic Activities to Promote Human Rights Values, Truth and Justice" (by the Moscow Helsinki Group).

The authorities of Chechnya have declared June 4-6 to be days-off in connection with the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. Local residents fear a price rise on the eve of the holiday of Uraza-Bayram.

The Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence (MoD) has treated the statement of the Armenian side that the Azerbaijani soldiers have left the new combat positions equipped on the Nakhichevan section of the border as disinformation.

The residents of Buynaksk, accused of links with militants, told investigators about their plans to leave for Ukraine to study the sabotage activities there, Arsen Shabanov, an advocate, has stated. Relatives of Ramazan Zakaryaev and Samat Tatarkhanov pointed to the practice of fabricating terrorism cases by law enforcers.